On July 24, 2021, jihadists from Islamic State – West Africa Province (ISWAP) attacked a Cameroonian outpost in Sagme, Cameroon, sparking a battle that killed eight Cameroonian soldiers and twenty jihadists.
| 2021 Sagme attack | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Part of Boko Haram insurgency | |||||||
| |||||||
| Belligerents | |||||||
 Cameroon |
 ISWAP | ||||||
| Strength | |||||||
| Unknown |
90 men 6 pick-ups Several motorcycles | ||||||
| Casualties and losses | |||||||
|
8 killed 13 injured | 13-20 killed | ||||||
Background
editIn 2016, Boko Haram founder and commander Abubakar Shekau pledged allegiance to the Islamic State and renamed the group Islamic State – West Africa Province (ISWAP), although the central Islamic State command installed Abu Musab al-Barnawi as the leader of ISWAP. This started a schism that culminated in the Battle of Sambisa Forest in May 2021, where Shekau killed himself and ISWAP effectively became the dominant jihadist group in the Lake Chad region, which includes northern Cameroon.[1]
Boko Haram fighters attacked the town of Sagme in northern Cameroon in 2018, killing six soldiers and 15 jihadists.[2][1] Throughout 2021, ISWAP attempted to establish ore influence in northern Cameroon, with several attacks on Cameroonian military posts that summer.[3]
Attack
editCameroonian authorities stated that around 90 jihadists on six vehicles and several motorcycles entered Sagme from the Nigerian border.[4] The jihadists attacked the Cameroonian outpost in Sagme around 4:00 a.m., and all were well-armed with some donning military camoflage.[5] An anonymous Cameroonian soldier who survived the attack said that the post's commander and six other soldiers were killed, and that they had died fighting bravely.[5]
The attack killed eight soldiers, and Cameroonian authorities assessed that twenty jihadists were killed.[6] Six of the Cameroonian soldiers were killed during the battle, and two died en route to a hospital in Maroua.[7] Cameroonian officials added that the ISWAP fighters fled carrying the bodies of their comrades, so the death toll was hard to determine.[7][8] The United States later assessed that 13 jihadists were killed, citing several accounts.[9][7] Thirteen soldiers were wounded as well.[7]
Several hundred civilians fled Sagme during and following the attack.[7] The governor of Far North Region, where Sagme is located, urged the civilians to return to their homes and reiterated a prior statement from Paul Biya that reinforcements would arrive in the town.[7] The attack in Sagme was the deadliest day for the Cameroonian army in over ten months.[5]
Aftermath
editISWAP attacked Far North Region again on July 26, killing five soldiers and a civilian during an attack at Zigue. Around 17 jihadists were killed in the attack as well.[6][9]
References
edit- ^ a b "Non-international Armed Conflicts in Cameroon". Rule of Law in Armed Conflicts Project (RULAC). Retrieved 2024-09-25.
- ^ "Crisis Watch: April 2018". International Crisis Group. May 2018. Retrieved September 25, 2024.
- ^ "ISWAP takes aim at the state in Cameroon". ISS Africa. Retrieved 2024-09-25.
- ^ "Cameroon Civilians Flee After Deadly Boko Haram Attack". AllAfrica. July 24, 2021. Retrieved September 25, 2024.
- ^ a b c "Sat: Seven Cameroonian soldiers killed in Boko Haram attack". Evernote. Retrieved 2024-09-25.
- ^ a b "August Alerts and July Trends 2021". International Crisis Group. August 2021. Retrieved September 25, 2024.
- ^ a b c d e f "Cameroon: Civilians Flee After Deadly Boko Haram Attack". Voice of America. 2021-07-25. Retrieved 2024-09-25.
- ^ Etahoben, Chief Bisong (2021-07-27). "8 Soldiers, Over 20 Boko Haram Terrorists Die In Cameroon Clashes". HumAngle. Retrieved 2024-09-25.
- ^ a b "2021 Country Reports on Human Rights Practices: Cameroon". United States Department of State. 2021. Retrieved September 25, 2024.